Ratified December 15, 1791
One sentence, two much-debated clauses: a justification ("A well regulated Militia, being necessary...") and an operative right ("the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed"). How those two clauses relate to each other has been the central question in the modern debate over gun rights and regulation.
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.